Church Music, Part III [pp. 743-754]

Chtirck Mustc. 75'
ing to pay him, then il~e subject of that our young men, as a class, are
il~e church chant will at once engage "spoiling" for some church work.
the attention and study of professors How many would not feel both honof music whose business it is to teach. ored and gratified by an invitation
At this moment it is generally under- to labor with us in renovating and
stood (and not ~without reason) by all restoring the grand offices of the
organists and directors of choirs that Church to their pristine order and
our Catholic churches need perfbrm- sublime harmony! We manage to
ers and teachers who can come re- associate together a few of our young
commended as well versed in "the men in various confraternities and
masses," as they are called. associations, and drive a few more
As a consequence, these gentlemen into the ranks of the society of St.
devote all their energies to the study Vincent de Paul; but the greater numand practice of such compositions, ber, upon whom depend the future
and to the science of directing a mix- es~nt of our church in this couned chorus. We do the musical pro- try, and upon whose attachment to
fession the justice of believing its all that concerns the dignity and detaste to be quite at variance with the vout character of our religious sertaste of the public it serves; and, al- vices hang the fortunes of our faith,
though we are prepared to see our are left unnoticed and unemployed.
d~oirdirector shrug his shoulders and We propose this subject of the reforreturn us a wondering look when we mation of church music to them as a
propose our reformation to him, still, labor of love and true Catholic devowhen we shall have given him to un- tion,worthy oftheir hearty co5peration,
derstand that we ourselves know what and tending to their own intellectual
we want, and are prepared to count refinement and moral elevation. We
the cost, we feel assured that he will are not wholly unacquainted wiU~ the
readily come into our views, and en- souls of this class of our brethren in
ter upon this new field of musical the faith, and will answer for the reculture with more zest than he has sponse that will be made to our senhitherto shown in the conduct of mu- timents by any Catholic young man
sic, for the most part, despicable even whose eye may chance to fall on
in his own eyes. We will engage him these lines.
to produce church music in first-class Now as to the matter of proper
church style. We will aid him by church musictooks. Speaking as
causing an organ of sufficient size to one who has been made wise through
be erected near the choristers in the suffering, we rejoice at the prospect
vicinity of the sanctuary. Should he of seeing all our " Catholic choircrave for a larger chorus, we will seek books," "Morning and Evening serout a number of young men, from vices," and such trash, bundled up
eighteen to twenty-five years of age, and sent to the paper-makers. We
whom we have in our eye, whose in- are at liberty to state that, while the
terest will not fail of being excited in present CEcumenical Council may althis subject to which we give our pas- lude only incidentally to the subject
toral solicitude, and whose social and of church music, by confirming the
moral character we feel assured will ancient canons made in regard to it,
be benefited by being associated with the Congregation of Rites is already
our regular choir as volunteers. If preparing an authonzed version of
we might be permitted the use of an the Roman Gradual and Vesperal, and
expressive vulgarism, we would say that his Holiness will issue a brief in